How important is it that your services are easy to sell? Wouldn’t it be even better if they were easy to buy?

Why is selling a service so different from selling a product? In some ways, the principles should be the same. The objective is to get the prospect to agree that the way to solve their problem is to use your product or service.

• The element of trust: It’s never possible to know exactly what will be received until the service has been given
• The sales person as part of the service: The product sales person can never be part of his or her product. The product has its own dimensions and specifications which are self contained and unique. But a sales person selling a service is often part of the ‘package’ – especially if it is you, selling your own service.
• A service can’t be stored: You can’t make it in advance and stock it for selling later. And each time you deliver a service, it’s going to be slightly different.

So, how can you make the process of selling a service that much more effective? Here are a few quick ideas for you to experiment with, adapt and adopt

1. Make the Intangible Tangible: Services are intangible–you can’t see them, touch them, take them out of the box or demonstrate them. Yet this is exactly what you need to do to make them easier for your customers to buy them. So how do you accomplish this?

The answer is to “productize” your service. Make it tangible. Think like a product manager. Here are four different techniques you can use to package your service to act more like a product:

• Turn your service into a product.
• Package your different service levels.
• Combine your services and create a new offering.
• Package your process.

Each of these techniques will help you create a distinct (tangible) advantage over other service providers and make your services easier to buy.

2. Use testimonials: These can be concrete evidence that your service has worked for other people. And if your existing satisfied customers don’t volunteer testimonials, ask for them. You’ll seldom get a refusal.

3. Make your service offering  different: Product manufacturers try to make their products different from their competitors. It’s even more important to show how your service offers something different. And make sure that the differences are ones which are important to the prospect.

4. Don’t sell your time: If you are selling a time-based service, try not to sell it on the basis of so many hours worked. Sell it on so much per solution or project. This way, you remove the fear barrier that you might be trying to spin the project out  and you’ll be offering a firm outcome for a fixed price.

What all these techniques have in common is the opportunity for you to present all the value you deliver. Often, we make assumptions that our customers understand everything we do for them. But this just isn’t the case: You need to pull out every piece of value you provide over the course of a project and present that to the client in order for them to completely understand what a terrific job you’re doing for them.

More information about me can be found here and here

Six Steps to Becoming More Self-Disciplined

Discipline is the bridge between your goals and accomplishments.

Discipline, willpower, self-control – Whatever you call it, self-discipline is difficult for many people. Some days you think you simply don’t have it in you to make those 10 cold calls, and other days it seems much easier to drive by the gym than to go in and do a work out.

Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built. Lack of discipline inevitably leads to failure. So, how do you become more self-disciplined?

These are not tasks to cross off as “completed”; instead, they are principles to use to guide your daily life.

1. Pace Yourself – Sometimes we have so much to do, we feel overwhelmed. For example, look at your business plan for the entire year. If it looks like an impossible undertaking, you might be tempted to give it a half-hearted effort. After all, it won’t work anyway, so why try, right? If approaching a project on the global scale intimidates you, don’t let it. Instead, take it one day, or if necessary, one hour at a time.

2. Organize – When lacking willpower, any minor setback will completely derail your efforts. So plan your day and then you won’t waste time or become discouraged. Make a list of the tasks you need to accomplish. Review the list and be realistic about what you can and will do. As you evaluate the tasks, look for any entries that are what you want to do, rather than what you need to do.

3. Be Honest – Self-discipline is powered by motivation; therefore, be honest about what motivates you. If its money, admit it and don’t think you need to apologize. If the admiration of others keeps you going, embrace that and use it to propel you even further

4. Be Flexible – Continually re-evaluate your list of tasks and do them because they are the right things to do, not because you might feel like a failure if you don’t complete a task on your list. Too many times we fall into a routine of doing things simply because it’s what we’ve always done, without examining if the reasons why we did them are still valid. Our goals and visions continually change, so our responsibilities might need to as well. If you lack willpower or self-discipline, it might be because you are trying to do something no longer in line with your goals and beliefs.

5. Take Responsibility – As you work toward your goals, be mindful of your effect on others. Take responsibility for your actions and, if necessary, apologize or change your behaviour. If left unresolved, a sour experience will become much bigger than the original event. Handle it now, and it won’t require a lot of willpower or discipline in the future.

6. Reward Yourself – Being self-disciplined is hard. You deserve credit for doing things you don’t want to do, or don’t feel like doing right now. Give yourself praise and a reward when you accomplish tasks. Don’t wait for others to notice, go ahead and pat yourself on the back. You deserve it!

You may also like to consider some of my recent tweets on Discipline.

DISCIPLINE

• Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.
• We must all suffer from one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons.
• All disciplines affect each other. Mistakenly the man says, “This is the only area where I let down.” Not true. Every let down affects the rest. Not to think so is naive.
• Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built. Lack of discipline inevitably leads to failure.
• Discipline has within it the potential for creating future miracles.
• The best time to set up a new discipline is when the idea is strong.
• One discipline always leads to another discipline.
• Affirmation without discipline is the beginning of delusion.
• You don’t have to change that much for it to make a great deal of difference. A few simple disciplines can have a major impact on how your life works out in the next 90 days, let alone in the next 12 months or the next 3 years.
• The least lack of discipline starts to erode our self-esteem.

Ultimately the price of excellence is discipline.

More information about me can be found here and here

Ten Strategies for Time Management

1. The first step is being aware of where your time is going, now.
You can’t find something you’ve lost when you don’t know where you might have lost it in the first place. So the first strategy for managing your time is to know where it’s going, now. That means actually tracking or logging your time daily, for at least 1-week (preferably 2). Track the exact time you begin and end an activity, make a note of the duration in exact minutes, and a few words to describe the activity. This step requires you to be really honest with yourself and track EVERYTHING you do in your work day so you can see where your time is really going — so if you spent 23 minutes chatting with co-workers at the coffee machine (no cheating by logging all your time in nice, even 15, 30 or 60 minute intervals) — write it down exactly.

2. Analyze and summarize your time logs.
At the end of the week, review your time logs and start to summarize the tasks (and the amount of time spent on each) into categories. You will create these categories yourself, and you should have between 6 and 12 categories. They should be meaningful to you, self-defining, mutually exclusive and as concise as possible. Some examples might be Administration, Business Development, Sales & Marketing, Computer, etc. You will then summarize, for each day, how much time you spent doing tasks or activities for each category, in the exact number of minutes. You might also do a little math, to figure the percentage of time each category takes out of each day. You make this step as detailed as you like, but the key here is awareness.

3. Create a New Daily Routine.
If you were honest and diligent during steps 1 and 2, chances are you had a rude awakening when you reviewed and analyzed your time logs. You no doubt can see where the time drains are occurring — and now you’re ready to make better choices and create a new daily routine. This routine will maximize the time you spend on productive work by conforming to the natural flow of your day and with your natural rhythms, by taking into consideration when you’re at your best for certain tasks, grouping similar tasks together for greater efficiency and by setting aside dedicated time for doing uninterrupted work. How do you create your routine? Look at where you’ve been spending your time and start making some decisions about where the different tasks can best be fit into your day, then actually write this routine down and post it where you’ll see it every day. Strategies 4 through 10 will give you some food for thought as you develop and implement your new daily routine.

4. Prioritize and stay focused.
Once you’ve done the up-front work of tracking and analyzing your time, and creating a new routine, how do you keep it on track? You will also need to do some work on prioritizing what you do. You can create your own easy tools to do this. On one sheet of paper, create 5 sections: High Priorities, Secondary Priorities, People to Contact, Telephone Calls, and Schedule. You can fill this out each day, first thing in the morning (or better yet, at the end of your workday so you are well prepared to start fresh tomorrow!) Each day, ask yourself: “If nothing else gets done today, what are the one or two items that absolutely MUST be done?” Those are the items you will use to focus your day. You should also periodically go back to the time logging exercise, so you can determine if you are slipping back into those old bad habits and take immediate steps to get back on track.

5. Reduce interruptions by creating stronger boundaries.
It is true that interruptions to your day can and will happen, and to some degree they are out of your control. However, you probably have more control than you think. Instead of blaming other people and getting frustrated with them for interrupting you, take responsibility for creating stronger boundaries with your co-workers where appropriate. Keep in mind, other people don’t mean to be inconsiderate by interrupting, they are just caught up in their own “stuff” and probably don’t realize. It is really up to you to set up some guidelines for when you can and cannot be interrupted, to communicate them to others, and then to stick by them. For example: you might institute a “quiet time” policy (mornings are usually best) where you let everyone know that this is a time where you cannot be interrupted — and then set up another time later in the day where you have an open-door policy. This strategy creates a firm boundary but also provides time for you to be accessible to others. At first, those around you might try to cross your boundaries, and it’s up to you to gently remind them that they can come back and talk during your “open door” time. After a while, they’ll get used to it. Change takes time, so stick with it!

6. Structure your telephone time.
Set aside certain periods of the day to accept, initiate and return calls. The best time to accept incoming calls is just prior to lunch or at the end of the work day (the other person will not want to dawdle on the phone at those times either) — so whenever possible, let others know this is your preference and set that time aside so you are available. When initiating or returning calls, the best time to contact those difficult-to-reach clients is early in the morning, just before or after lunch, or late in the day.

7. Don’t procrastinate.
Procrastination is probably one of the biggest “time hogs” we have. Not only are we NOT doing the thing we’re procrastinating about, but we also end up wasting even more time worrying about how much we’re procrastinating. So, if you have an unpleasant task to do, simply make up your mind to take care of it immediately and just get it done.

8. Under-promise and over-deliver.
You may have heard this one before, but a little reinforcement never hurts. Many of us have too many requirements on our time because we take on more than we should. When we over-commit ourselves, we are not only creating unnecessary stress in our lives, but we are also creating potential situations where we cannot deliver what we’ve promised. We also don’t realize that when we can’t deliver what we’ve promised, we can inadvertently cause more pain and hurt feelings than if we’d been willing to say no in the first place. Remember that you’re not doing yourself or anyone else any favours by taking on more than you can reasonably deliver. Commit yourself to making this strategy a high priority in your life, and watch what happens.

9. Separate your work from your personal life.
It is critical for your health and emotional balance that you find a way to separate your work from your personal life. If possible, don’t take work to be done after hours at all unless you are certain you can get to it. It’s better to stay a little longer at the office (but be sure and set time limits for yourself) to get it done, then enjoy your leisure time without the stress of having to do work after hours. If you work from a remote office, you will need to be even more diligent in setting aside separate times in your day for work and for your personal time and family.

10. Remember that you’re only human.
We all have only 24 hours in the day — and sometimes that just doesn’t feel like enough, does it? There will always be days where things happen that are unplanned and which can throw even the most organized day into a tailspin. When that happens, take a deep breath or two, and accept that you are doing the very best you can, right now. Tomorrow is a new day and a chance to start fresh. Let go of the need to be a perfectionist and remember you’re only human.

More information about me can be found here and here

You don’t know how to say No to a person then please learn because a single Yes can eat up your fruitful quality time. People will respect for being open and honest enough to say you are unable or unwilling to do something as long as you explain your reasons. Saying no at the appropriate time can be a great confidence booster too.

1) If you don’t know how to say NO, people will take undue advantage of you. At the office you will be bogged down with your work and the work of others while they sit back and enjoy themselves.

2) Be aware that additional work or demands will often come from your boss or your peers because you cannot say “NO”.

3) As a parent you need to understand when to say NO or else your children will take undue advantage. Children have no scrupples and will often push boundaries. Saying no can set healthy boundaries and is good discipline.

4) If you cannot meet a person’s expectations just tell them NO rather than thinking what will they think if I say NO and then worrying or becoming stressed. Explain why you can’t do what they want and help them with an alternative solution if that is appropriate.

5) Its always better to say NO rather than saying YES for additional work and then suffering afterwards.

Be true to yourself, you understand yourself better than anyone else. You have to understand when and how to say NO. The people who are close to your heart may feel bad if they hear a NO from you, so you very well need to understand how to tell NO them assertively without hurting their feelings and without giving in to the situation.

It happens to everybody and you are not the only one. In day to day life we face these situations and it’s upto us how well we can manage that situation.

If we start doing others work there will be an imbalance in our own life which may have other implications further down the line.

Try out the power of saying “NO” and be a different and transformed person

For more information about Ian Dickson go to www.iandickson.biz

6 Ways to Stop Being Late

Motivation through Challenges
Individuals are motivated when they are working towards personally meaningful goals. Attainment of those goals must require activity that is increasingly difficult, but attainable. In other words, people like to be challenged, but they must feel their goals are achievable to stay motivated. This can be accomplished by:

• Establishing goals that are personally meaningful
• Making those goals possible
• Providing feedback on performance
• Aligning goals with the individual’s self esteem

Motivation through Curiosity
In this concept of self motivation we are talking about providing something in the individual’s environment that arouses their curiosity. This can be accomplished by presenting the individual with something that connects their present knowledge or skills with a more desirable level – if the person were to engage in a certain activity. So to motivate someone through curiosity, the environment must stimulate their interest to learn more.

Motivation through Control
Most people like to feel they are in control of their destiny. They want to feel in control of what happens to them. To stay motivated, individuals must understand the cause and effect relationship between an action they will take and the result. To motivate individuals through the use of control you can:

• Make the cause and effect relationship clear by establishing a goal and its reward.
• Allow individuals to believe that the work they do does make a difference.
• Allow individuals to choose what they want to learn and how to go about learning it.

Motivation through Fantasy
Another intrinsic motivating factor comes via fantasy. That is individuals can use mental images of things and / or situations that are not actually present to motivate themselves. You can foster motivation through fantasy by helping individuals imagine themselves in situations that are motivating.

For example, if you know that someone is highly motivated by the thought of being in control, then you can talk to them about a future point in time when they might be in charge of a large and important business operation.

Motivation through Competition
Individuals can also be motivated by competition. That’s because we gain a certain amount of satisfaction by comparing our performance to that of others. This type of competition can occur naturally as well as artificially.
When using competition to foster motivation, keep in mind the following:

• Competition is more motivating to some than others
• Losing in a competition de-motivates more than winning motivates
• Competitive spirits can sometimes reduce the likelihood of being helpful to competitors

Motivation through Cooperation
Cooperating with others or the feeling that you can help others is very motivating. Most individuals feel quite satisfied by helping others achieve their goals. As was the case with competition, motivation through cooperation can occur naturally or artificially.
When attempting to use cooperating to motivate, keep in mind:

• Cooperation is more important to some individuals than others
• Cooperation is a valuable skill that can be used in many different situations
• Interpersonal skills are important for cooperation

Motivation through Recognition
Finally, individuals are motivated through recognition. When their accomplishments are recognized by others, then they feel motivated. You need to make sure that recognition is distinguished from competition. With recognition you do not compare their achievements to those of others as you might with a competition.

Extrinsic or External Motivation
As previously mentioned, extrinsic or external motivation is the term used to describe external factors that stimulate our internal motivation. The concept of externally motivating someone is not at odds with the fact that motivation comes from within. The point here is that it is possible to provide others with situations or an external environment that is motivating.

Perhaps the most useful lesson for the leader then becomes how to motivate employees that report directly or indirectly to the leader. If you understand the intrinsic motivational factors previously described, then a game plan can be developed to foster motivation among employees.

Employee Motivation
Some of the most effective ways for managers and leaders to motivate their staff includes recognition, providing positive performance feedback and by challenging employees to learn new things. Many new managers make the mistake of introducing de-motivating factors into the workplace such as punishment for mistakes or frequent criticisms.

When followers feel they are being supported and they have the ability to remain in control of their workplace they stay motivated. Leaders can foster this feeling by allowing employees to take on added responsibility and accountability for making decisions.

But the important thing to keep in mind is that motivation is individual and the degree of motivation achieved through one single strategy will not be the most effective way to motivate all employees. The most effective way to determine what motivates others is through carefully planned trial and error.

DISCIPLINE

The price of excellence is discipline.
The cost of mediocrity is disappointment.

• Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment.
• We must all suffer from one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret.The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons.
• All disciplines affect each other. Mistakenly the man says, “This is the only area where I let down.” Not true. Every let down affects the rest. Not to think so is naive.
• Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built. Lack of discipline inevitably leads to failure.
• Discipline has within it the potential for creating future miracles.
• The best time to set up a new discipline is when the idea is strong.
• One discipline always leads to another discipline.
• Affirmation without discipline is the beginning of delusion.
• You don’t have to change that much for it to make a great deal of difference. A few simple disciplines can have a major impact on how your life works out in the next 90 days, let alone in the next 12 months or the next 3 years.
• The least lack of discipline starts to erode our self-esteem.

Go here for more information about Ian Dickson

1.    Indulge in some luxury oil for the bath and pamper yourself with a long soak.

2.    Book some time in the diary for your hair and nails and a massage!  Or find a beauty college/massage college that offers more reasonable treatments for student practice

3.    Buy a trashy book – or even not so trashy book – I love Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert – http://www.elizabethgilbert.com/eatpraylove.htm

4.    Try the Pzziz – good for a quick break during the day and great for getting you off to sleep – http://www.pzizz.com

5.    A great tip from my colleague, Hilary – buy a slow cooker. Cuisinart ones are good. Just bung in the ingredients and relax.

6.    Think about doing a detox – come on our wonderful New Year retreat.  Contact interested@thenutritioncoach.co.uk to find out more, or check our blog for the latest news - http://thenutritioncoach.co.uk/blog

http://www.thenutritioncoach.co.uk/nutrition-retreats.htm

7.    Don’t try and have a tidy house – it’s a losing battle!

8.    Live in the NOW – see “The Power of Now” by Eckhart Tolle.

9.    Breathe!

10.  Celebrate the good things in life and don’t dwell on the bad

The retreat is set in glorious Dorset and runs from 21st to 24th January 2010.

Find out more about our New Year detox retreat, or contact our London nutrition clinic to book a place.

Julia Alderman